Flee!
by strange72191
Summary: It wasn't just a game; Blythe is finding that out the hard way. Someone new is in charge of the Belli estate and has been abducting people for his or her own purposes. Now, Blythe has to take her in-game knowledge with a grain of salt in order to escape.
1. Endless Dream

Author's note: For those of you who have read the beginning of this story previously posted, I have examined and altered my plot, therefore resulting in a similar, but decidedly different story. I still intend to carry it in the same direction; however, I will be using somewhat different means to accomplish my ends. I hope that this version will be just as enjoyable as the version previously posted, thank you.

* * *

"_Come to me."_

It was the same dream, the same dream Blythe had been having ever since the field trip had been announced. It woke her at all hours, and, when she could not fall asleep again, she spent that time playing _Haunting Ground_, trying to beat the urge to play out of her system. Because every few nights, during the months leading up to the class field trip to England, she found herself in Belli Mansion.

"_Come to me."_

_She was standing stone still in the doorway, which led into the House of Truth; only, it was not the House of Truth, not the one from the game, anyway. It was better, more real. She could feel the sinister magic in this place._

"_Come to me."_

_She walked slowly down the corridor, only becoming sidetracked a few times along the way. She examined the walls and furniture, touching them all tentatively, until she reached a second corridor that she knew led to Lorenzo's study. As if in a trance, she walked numbly past the grotesque figures in the walls and headed toward the study door._

"_Come to me."_

_She reached out a hand to turn the doorknob; however, a scream interrupted her. It was followed by more screams; she clasped her hands over her ears as the screams became louder and more violent. She could not tell who was screaming, if it was one voice or two, someone else or even herself. The image of the dream distorted around her as she screwed her eyelids shut._

Blythe opened her eyes blearily, found that her hands were actually covering her ears and her alarm clock was blaring on her bedside table. She pressed the Snooze button and blinked the sleep from her eyes in the dim morning light. She felt her travel bag on the end of her bed, still open and halfway packed. _Today's the day_, she thought excitedly.

"_Come to me."_


	2. Strange door

Shortly after arriving overseas, the students were taken out to eat before being put on a bus heading toward the countryside. Since it had been such a long flight, the chaperones had decided that the major inner-city sightseeing, which would require much walking, would wait until tomorrow. After about an hour of driving, they took a turn that Blythe did not notice immediately. It was well-concealed by tall trees, and difficult to see from the main road; however, once they were steady on it, it turned into a full, wide path, which was simple to drive on.

The path winded through the colorful forest for twenty or thirty minutes more before meeting a bridge, which led shortly to a tall, wooden gate. Their guide instructed everyone to exit the bus and explained that, although the owner of the castle that they were visiting sometimes allowed school groups inside the grounds, this was not one of those times. He then launched into a history of the castle itself while the students huddled around shivering in the brisk autumn air.

Blythe was content to stand at the back of the group while she listened to their guide and took in the scenery at the same time. She noticed that, although this castle was on their itinerary, there were no signs posted that identified it, no informative plaques mounted about the history of such a place. Also, from what she could see of the castle, it was not well-maintained, unlike any historical landmarks she had seen before. Where exactly were they? From what she gleaned from the guide's lecture, the family that owned the premises had done so for centuries and always been a very secluded and mysterious bunch who liked their privacy. She smirked quietly to herself and mused about a certain video game.

Gradually, she noticed herself paying less attention to the lecture. Her eyelids became heavy; her vision became hazy, and she was suddenly very aware that someone was standing behind her. There was a flash before she blacked out. She was unsure whether the next few moments were actually moments, minutes, or hours. During this undetermined period of time, she faded in and out of awareness: there was darkness, a passageway, voices, lights, coldness, a door, hardness, and finally, bars.

_Load game._


End file.
